Care and Cleaning

Following our maintenance suggestions will ensure years of worry free service for your Rainier SRS™ Screen. Contact us for additional information or if your question is not answered below.

We recommend watching your screens while they are operating. Objects left under a motorized unit can prevent the unit from lowering. If this happens, lift the bottom bar up manually (bottom bar on SRS Screens will only raise a couple of inches), remove the obstacle, and lower the bottom bar. If it does not extend to a level position, use the remote up button and roll up the mesh until the bottom bar is level.

Stop the unit, then lower it.

Interruption of power can affect motorized unit operation. Ensure that power is still getting to the unit by checking circuit breakers and ground faults for resetting. Remotes (in wall and hand-held) have a limited battery life. If the remote light does not come on when the buttons are depressed, the battery needs to be replaced.

Rainier SRS (Side Retention Screen) screens are intended to provide protection from the sun, privacy, and keep insects out. They provide limited retention and/or security of objects, animals or persons inside or outside your dwelling. Rainier screens are manufactured from solid fabric or fabric mesh which can be damaged or cut. Ensure tracks are kept free of dirt and debris which may cause the screen to perform poorly. Cleaning the tracks and lubricating them with a dry silicone spray periodically can restore smooth operation. DO NOT use oil, grease, petroleum or oil base sprays — these may attract dirt or impair the proper operation of your screen(s).

Mesh and solid fabrics, housing, side tracks and hem bar can be cleaned with water and a soft brush but not with a pressure washer. A mild detergent like dish soap can be used, but do not use chemicals. After cleaning the mesh, rinse thoroughly and allow it to dry fully before rolling it back into the housing.

Screens with clear window vinyl can be cleaned and maintained with any of the many products on the market made for the care and maintenance of clear flexible vinyl. We do not make any specific recommendations other than the following:

Wash regularly with a mild soap and water spraying down the curtain. Beware of washing with trapped grit in your cloth mitt. Polish occasionally with any of the products made for maintenance of clear flexible vinyl.

Do not use Rainex – this will cause hazing, discoloration and distortion over time.

Do not leave curtains rolled up over prolonged periods. Roll down often to avoid clouding from trapped water, fold distortions, etc.

Make sure screen is fully dry before retracting.

What to do if the curtain clouded up due to water being trapped in it when rolled up: If the curtain is exposed to direct sunlight for any length of time during the day, the whiteness will gradually disappear. You can accelerate this with a heat gun or a common hair dryer. Hold 4-8 inches from surface (depending on heat and power of heat gun), working a 12 inch square area at a time. Be patient – it takes a few minutes, but you will suddenly see the cloud radiate out of the vinyl, concentric to the center of the heated area. Do not overheat or concentrate heat in one area for any length of time, as this will distort the vinyl.

What to do if waves have formed in the curtain from being rolled up for a long time: If it is a good, hot day and the sun is going to thoroughly warm the vinyl, it should “shake out”. If not, a heat gun or common hair dryer can force the glass to relax to its “memory”. Use heat gun or dryer as described above.

What to do if your window has poor watershed off product: This is usually due to build-up on the surface of the vinyl. Wash thoroughly first, then apply a polish – like Aquatech Premiere Polish – or one of many products available to restore the surface to a slick finish.

How wind affects your Rainier SRS Screen/How much wind your screen will handle has many variables that you should be aware of:

Size of the screen. The width & height of your screen is a factor. Larger screens can handle less wind due to surface area exposed to wind load.

Type of fabric in the screen: More open mesh type fabrics will withstand stronger winds than solid fabrics.

Type of wind. There are gusts, sustained winds, micro bursts, etc. and each of these can have a different effect on your screen.

Where your screen is mounted. Screens mounted against a structure can withstand stronger wind loads than screens mounted between openings out in the open with nothing behind them.

It is recommended that screens be retracted in winds that exceed 40 mph. However, depending on the conditions above, your screen may need to be retracted before winds start to blow that strongly. Common sense is dictated here, and close observation of your screen’s reaction to wind.

In excessive wind, depending on the size of the screen, you may need to assist the screen in retracting or lowering due to the additional force and friction placed on the screen and side track operation. In lowering, if you seen the screen not dropping as it should, press the stop button on the remote control and wait for the screen to finish dropping or you may gently pull down on it until it stops. Then you can continue with the down operation and again watch for the slowing or stopping of the drop and repeat above procedure. When retracting in excessive winds, gently help the bottom bar/hem bar up as the motor retracts the screen if you notice it struggling to retract. This will protect your motor from overheating.

Your Rainier motorized screen has a thermal protection device built into the motor to protect it from overheating due to heavy loads or overuse. Should this happen, the motor will simply stop functioning for anywhere between 20-45 minutes to cool off. Once cooled down, it will again be functioning properly.